[V5C2] A Rival’s Good Will
Translated by Jodas 5: The Magic BattleThe morning of the magic battle, Frederik Lange, mage of the Extermination Office, floated lightly with flight magic about the grounds of the Wedge Tower.
Whenever he had trouble sleeping, he often used flight magic to fly about in much the same manner. Because as long as he was flying with his spear in hand, he had no reason to fear the night or Monsters.
If he felt like it, he could fly faster than anyone else, but he usually kept a much slower pace at times like this.
By choosing not to fight against the wind, but rather fly wherever the wind blew him, he could feel as if he had become a loose sheet dancing in the breeze. Frederik liked the time he spent doing this.
This was a man who was more fearsome than anyone else when up against Monsters, but he was otherwise a gentle and free-spirited man, much like a loose sheet, blown away by the wind.
“What, does that mean you’ve got your head in the clouds? …Ah, how sad for me to have such an insincere man with mush for brains as a classmate… It’s so sad… Please live here on the ground like the rest of us…”
Those were the words of his classmate, Helena. As rude as always.
Just as that memory came back to piss him off, he heard someone call to him from right next to him.
“Hey, how’s it going?”
Turning around, Frederik saw a man with auburn hair floating up to him with flight magic.
A mage of the Management Office, Winston Barrett.
It hadn’t been long since Barrett first came to the Wedge Tower, so he wasn’t on very close terms with Frederik. Most of their interactions were just like this, greeting each other if they passed one another while using flight magic.
“Good Morning.”
Frederik replied casually while he flowed along with the wind currents. Barrett looked at him with amazement.
“I’m impressed. You might be surprised, but not many people can fly without using any propulsion like that.”
“I wouldn’t be able to use my spear if I couldn’t.”
If all the muscles in his body were tensed up at the same time as he swung his spear, it wouldn’t have any impact.
In order to wield a spear properly, he had to relax the parts of his body he didn’t need to use. With this technique mastered and applied to flight magic, it allowed him to make maneuvers that would be impossible if he was fighting on the ground.
The combination of subtle movements and agility were the secrets to the Lange Family spear techniques.
Oliver, who jumped as high as he could and swung his spear straight down, was out of the question. He wished Oliver would give up the Lange name and live as a total stranger somewhere far, far away.
“Is it really okay for you to be taking a sky walk this morning? You’ve got a magic battle against the Apprentice kids today, don’t you?”
Barrett’s words made him remember something.
He almost forgot that his little rival — Tia Vogel — had been frequenting Barrett’s Management Office lately, and practicing with a Magical Flying Device.
To Tia, Barrett might be something of a flight magic mentor to her.
As he absentmindedly considered that point, Barrett made a slightly concerned face and ran a hand through his windswept auburn hair.
“Shouldn’t you be conserving your mana? Flight magic consumes quite a lot, doesn’t it?”
“I’m not about to lose just because my mana is a little drained.”
“That kid is desperate to win against her rival, you know? She won’t want you going easy on her.”
Frederik realized his mistake.
He always suffered from insufficient sleep, always skipped his meals, and always floated around with flight magic, so his mana reserves were perpetually at sixty or seventy percent of what they could be.
That was natural for him, so he hadn’t seen anything wrong with taking a mindless stroll using flight magic this morning. Against his rival, though, this could be interpreted as a form of disrespect.
…Of course, regardless of whether he was short on sleep, or had skipped a meal, or was on low mana, he had no intentions of losing.
“You’re right. I should head back to the Extermination Office now.”
Frederik turned around with a curt “See ya later.” But before he could leave, Barrett called after him.
“When it comes to reading the wind currents, that little squirt is even better than you.”
Suddenly, that girl’s voice resounded in his head.
“I can’t fly very well right now…… but I’ll fly better than you before you know it, Frederik. I definitely will.”
His heart fluttered in an unusual way, and Frederik faintly smiled.
“I look forward to seeing it, then.”
When Frederik returned to the Extermination Office, Rikard and Helena had already taken their seats.
On the other end of the room, a large blond man — Extermination Office Director Haydn — fidgeted nervously.
Frederik rested his spear upright against the wall, and looked at Haydn.
“Why’s the Director so fidgety today? We’re the ones who’re going to do the magic battle.”
There was no way he actually expected them to lose, did he?
Haydn surely must have been aware of the massive gulf in training and practical experience between Apprentice Mages and the Extermination Office.
Suddenly, Frederik recalled a rumor he’d overheard recently. There would be guests coming to watch today’s magic battle.
“Don’t tell me; you’re worked up because Headmaster Möbius is going to be watching?”
“No, It’s just been a long time since I’ve seen Liese, so I’m a little nervous.”
“……”
Röhm from the Guidance Office — Anneliese Röhm — was an excellent mage who stood side-by-side with Haydn back when she was in the Extermination Office.
Haydn and Röhm had been rivals for years, and the two of them constantly pushed each other to greater heights.
And anyone with eyes could tell that Haydn had feelings for Röhm by now.
Even Frederik, who was out of the loop for most of the rumor mill, knew about it. It didn’t really interest him much, though.
“Why don’t you just talk to her?”
When Frederik mumbled that, a bitter expression arose on Haydn’s stoic face, and he raised and lowered his crossed arms.
“Well, yeah, we did that all the time when we were rivals. We had strategy meetings that went so long we had to stay the night, and even if we didn’t plan anything, we’d still meet each other for a practice match. But I can’t invite her to a practice match now that her mana organs are damaged…”
His rapid voice tapered off the more he spoke.
Haydn was usually proud and proper. He was a brave warrior who wouldn’t falter even if he encountered a swarm of Monsters.
Yet that same man got like this whenever Röhm was involved.
“And now since we belong to different Spires, it’s way harder for me to even invite her to lunch! Whenever I try to invite her, she says ‘Okay, I’ll go let Director Hegelich know’!”
It seemed that whenever Röhm was invited to lunch, she always assumed it was a business meeting under the guise of a meal.
Even though they were once rivals, now Haydn had been promoted to Director of the Extermination Office, while Röhm was only an ordinary mage of the Guidance Office.
Thus, Röhm would bring in Hegelich, her superior, in order to ensure the Extermination Office and Guidance Office were negotiating at an even standing.
(Or perhaps…)
He decided it would be better to leave the thought that just struck him unsaid, and swallowed his words.
Frederik had no interest in other people’s matters, and he didn’t feel like sticking his head into it.
Haydn sighed deeply and grumbled.
“If only we were in the same Spire, then I could have at least had lunch with her…”
The Wedge Tower was divided into three Spires, and each Spire had its own dining hall.
As a result, if two people belonged to different Spires, it would be safe to say that they’d almost never have the opportunity to eat lunch together.
Helena, who up to this point had been quietly listening to the conversation, whispered.
“Now that you bring it up, Röhm often has tea with Director Böll… I often see them together at the women’s dorm, too.”
“I’m jealous!”
Haydn pounded his fists on his thighs.